1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to containers made from paperboard, and more particularly to stackable containers used for both shipping and display and which have a removable display section.
2. Description of the Related Art
Corrugated containers are widely used to both ship and display goods such as food and candy items. The practice of displaying goods in shipping containers has become more popular with the advent of large warehouse style stores and supermarkets where the containers are stacked one on top of another on the retail floor.
A popular type of display container has one or more removable sections or panels typically defined by perforated tear lines. Such containers are generally formed from a one piece blank suitably cut, scored, and perforated to enable subsequent folding of the blank into the final closed container. After receiving the packaged goods, the retailer removes the display section from the container to provide access to the goods within even when the container is stacked.
A major consideration in design of such containers is its compression or stacking strength. Containers may collapse or become misshaped under the weight of the containers stacked on top. The inclusion of perforation lines to permit easy separation of the display panel reduces the structural integrity and compression strength of the container. The stress of stacking a large number of containers on top of each other may cause inadvertent opening or bending of the container along the perforation lines, and result in failure or collapse of the container. This destroys the aesthetic appearance of the container and damages the products within.
Tall stacks of containers are necessary to maximize utilization of cargo, warehouse, and retail floor space. Thus the problem has been to balance the maximization of compressive strength of the container against the economizing of the material and manufacturing costs to manufacture the container.
A further consideration is the compatibility of the containers with automated manufacturing and packaging equipment. Containers are typically made on automated production lines. Any suitable container design or modification to improve the strength of a container should be compatible with such production equipment. Furthermore, the packagers typically use automated packaging lines which assemble the container from a flat knockdown state and load the container with goods prior to the container being closed. Any method of reinforcing a container should not interfere with automated packaging equipment.
One advantageous type of container is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,957,294 to Kanter. This type of container has an insert added behind the container wall that has the removable display sections. The insert adds stacking strength by reinforcing the display panel which has been weakened by the perforations that define the display section. The insert is removed after the display container is opened. Alternatively, the insert can have a pattern of perforations matching that of the perforated container wall it reinforces. These containers, however, use an insert that is added during the construction process and thus involves separate steps to cut the insert and to combine the insert panel with the container. Cost reductions could be gained if these steps could be eliminated.
Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide a shipping/display container having improved compression and stacking strength.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a container having a reinforcement panel compatible for use with automated packaging equipment.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a display container having improved stacking strength that is economical to make and requires minimal additional material.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a display container that will not buckle or open along the perforated tear line for the display panels.
Additional objects, advantages and novel features will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means and the elements in combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.